Coretta Scott King

Coretta Scott King
King in 1964
Coretta Scott King
Born	Coretta Scott 27 4, 1927
Birthplace	Heiberger, Alabama, U.S.
Died	Template:Death date and age Rosarito, Baja California, Mexico
Nationality	American
Occupation	Author, activist, civil rights leader, singer
Known for	Civil rights advocacy, founding the Martin Luther King Jr. Center for Nonviolent Social Change, campaign for Martin Luther King Jr. Day
Education	New England Conservatory of Music (BM)
Spouse(s)	Template:Marriage
Children	4
Awards	Gandhi Peace Prize
Website	[http://www.thekingcenter.org Official site]

Coretta Scott King (née Scott; April 27, 1927 – January 30, 2006) was an American author, activist, civil rights leader, and trained concert singer who became one of the most influential figures in the twentieth-century struggle for racial equality in the United States. Born in rural Alabama during the era of Jim Crow segregation, she pursued higher education in music and the liberal arts before marrying Martin Luther King Jr. in 1953, after which the couple became central figures in the American civil rights movement. Following her husband's assassination on April 4, 1968, King assumed a prominent leadership role in the continuing fight for social justice, founding the Martin Luther King Jr. Center for Nonviolent Social Change (commonly known as the King Center) in Atlanta, Georgia, and leading a decades-long campaign to establish a federal holiday in her husband's honor. King's activism extended well beyond the memory of her husband; she became an outspoken advocate for women's rights, LGBTQ equality, and international peace, and was a vocal opponent of apartheid in South Africa. Often referred to as the "First Lady of the Civil Rights Movement," she remained a public figure and moral voice in American life until a stroke in August 2005 left her incapacitated. She died on January 30, 2006, at the age of 78.

Early Life

Coretta Scott was born on April 27, 1927, in Heiberger, Alabama, a small rural community in Perry County. She was raised in a family that valued education and self-reliance despite the pervasive racial discrimination of the Deep South. Her father, Obadiah Scott, was a farmer and entrepreneur who also operated a small trucking business, and her mother, Bernice McMurry Scott, supplemented the family income through various endeavors. Coretta had an older sister, Edythe Scott (later Edythe Scott Bagley), who would also become an educator and activist.

Growing up in segregated Alabama, King experienced racial hostility from an early age. The family's economic independence and relative prosperity made them targets; their home was subjected to threats and intimidation. These early experiences with racial injustice shaped King's worldview and instilled in her a determination to challenge the systems of oppression that defined life for Black Americans in the South.

King showed musical talent from a young age and was drawn to singing and performance. She attended Lincoln High School in nearby Marion, Alabama, one of the few secondary schools available to Black students in the region at that time. Her academic abilities and musical gifts earned her recognition, and she graduated as valedictorian of her class. Her older sister Edythe had already attended Antioch College in Yellow Springs, Ohio, and Coretta followed in her footsteps, securing a scholarship to attend the same institution.

The move from rural Alabama to Ohio represented a significant transition for King. At Antioch, she encountered a more integrated and intellectually diverse environment than anything she had previously known, though racial prejudice was not absent even in the North. These formative years at Antioch helped solidify her commitment to social justice and provided her with a broader understanding of the systemic nature of racial inequality in America.

Education

King earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Antioch College in Yellow Springs, Ohio, where she studied education and music. At Antioch, she became involved in campus political and civil rights organizations, including the local chapter of the NAACP, and developed her skills as a public speaker and organizer. She also pursued her interest in music through coursework and performance opportunities.

After graduating from Antioch, King was awarded a scholarship to attend the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston, Massachusetts, where she studied voice and pursued a Bachelor of Music degree. Her training at the conservatory was rigorous, and she developed her abilities as a concert singer, studying both classical repertoire and spirituals. It was during her time in Boston that she met Martin Luther King Jr., who was then a doctoral student in systematic theology at Boston University. The couple began dating in 1952 and married on June 18, 1953, on the lawn of her parents' home near Marion, Alabama.

Career

Early Activism and the Civil Rights Movement

After their marriage, Coretta and Martin Luther King Jr. moved to Montgomery, Alabama, in 1954, where Martin accepted the pastorate of Dexter Avenue Baptist Church. The couple quickly became immersed in the growing civil rights movement. The Montgomery Bus Boycott of 1955–1956, triggered by the arrest of Rosa Parks, thrust the King family into the national spotlight, with Martin emerging as the primary spokesperson and leader of the boycott.

Coretta Scott King played a crucial supporting and increasingly independent role during this period. She managed the family household under extraordinary circumstances—their home was bombed in January 1956 during the boycott—and served as a vital link between the movement and its supporters. King often incorporated her musical training into civil rights work, performing "Freedom Concerts" that combined narration, poetry, and song to raise funds and awareness for the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) and other civil rights organizations. These concerts, which she performed across the United States and internationally, blended spirituals, classical music, and spoken word to convey the moral urgency of the movement.

King accompanied her husband on numerous trips, including a 1959 visit to India to study the principles and legacy of Mahatma Gandhi's nonviolent resistance. This trip deepened the couple's commitment to nonviolence as a strategy for social change and influenced the trajectory of the civil rights movement in the United States.

Throughout the late 1950s and 1960s, King participated in marches, rallies, and demonstrations, though she also spent considerable time raising the couple's four children: Yolanda, Martin Luther King III, Dexter, and Bernice. Her involvement extended to behind-the-scenes organizing, correspondence, and public advocacy. King's telephone conversation with then-presidential candidate John F. Kennedy during the 1960 presidential election, in which Kennedy expressed concern after Martin Luther King Jr. was jailed in Georgia, has been credited by historians with helping to mobilize African-American voters in that closely contested race.

King was also an early and vocal opponent of the Vietnam War. According to historian Jeanne Theoharis, Coretta Scott King publicly opposed the Vietnam War before her husband did and urged him to take a more public stance against the conflict. Her opposition to the war was rooted in a broader commitment to peace and nonviolence that extended beyond domestic civil rights issues. She participated in peace marches and spoke at antiwar rallies, connecting the struggle for racial justice at home with opposition to militarism abroad.

After Martin Luther King Jr.'s Assassination

The assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. on April 4, 1968, in Memphis, Tennessee, was a shattering personal loss and a turning point in Coretta Scott King's public life. In the days immediately following her husband's death, she demonstrated remarkable composure and resolve, leading a march in Memphis on April 8, 1968, in support of the sanitation workers' strike that had brought Martin to the city. She also spoke at rallies and appeared publicly to call for continued commitment to nonviolent social change.

King quickly assumed a leadership role in preserving and advancing her husband's legacy. Within months of the assassination, she began planning what would become the Martin Luther King Jr. Center for Nonviolent Social Change, established in 1968 in Atlanta, Georgia. The King Center became an institution dedicated to educating the public about Martin Luther King Jr.'s philosophy and methods of nonviolent conflict resolution, and it served as a living memorial, archive, and training center for activists. King served as the founding president and chief executive of the organization for decades, overseeing its growth and the development of its programs.

One of King's most sustained and visible campaigns was her effort to establish a federal holiday honoring her husband. She lobbied members of Congress, organized petition drives, and built coalitions of supporters across racial and political lines. The campaign stretched over more than fifteen years and faced significant political opposition. On November 2, 1983, President Ronald Reagan signed legislation establishing the Martin Luther King Jr. Day federal holiday, which was first observed on January 20, 1986. King was present at the signing ceremony, and the achievement represented one of the most significant victories of her post-1968 career.

Expanding the Scope of Advocacy

In the decades following her husband's assassination, King broadened her activism to encompass a range of social justice causes. She became active in the women's movement, speaking and writing about the intersections of racial and gender discrimination. She argued that the struggle for civil rights and the struggle for women's equality were fundamentally linked and that both demanded the same commitment to justice and nonviolence.

King was also a prominent voice in the international anti-apartheid movement. She spoke out against the system of racial segregation in South Africa and advocated for economic sanctions and diplomatic pressure to bring about its end. Her involvement in the anti-apartheid cause reflected her belief that the principles of the American civil rights movement had global applicability.

In the 1980s and 1990s, King became an advocate for LGBTQ rights, a position that distinguished her from some other civil rights leaders of her generation. She publicly stated her support for civil rights protections for gay and lesbian Americans and drew parallels between the struggle for LGBTQ equality and the broader civil rights movement. King stated that her husband's vision of justice and equality embraced all people, regardless of sexual orientation, and she called on the civil rights community to stand against discrimination in all its forms.

King was also an author. She published her memoir, My Life with Martin Luther King, Jr., in 1969, which provided a personal account of the civil rights movement and her life alongside her husband. The book was an important document of the era and helped shape public understanding of the Kings' partnership in the movement.

Later Career and Retirement

King remained active in public life through the 1990s and into the early 2000s, continuing to speak, write, and advocate for social justice. She traveled extensively, meeting with world leaders and addressing audiences on topics ranging from nonviolent conflict resolution to economic justice. She maintained relationships with numerous American political figures, including Presidents Jimmy Carter, Bill Clinton, and others, and was a sought-after speaker at national and international events.

In 2006, the National Black Justice Coalition noted that King had retired from daily leadership of the King Center in previous years, passing operational responsibility to her children, though she continued to serve in an advisory and symbolic capacity. Her niece, Alveda King, and her daughter, Bernice King, also became public figures associated with the King legacy, though they sometimes held different positions on social issues than Coretta had espoused.

Personal Life

Coretta Scott King married Martin Luther King Jr. on June 18, 1953. The couple had four children: Yolanda Denise King (1955–2007), Martin Luther King III (born 1957), Dexter Scott King (1961–2024), and Bernice Albertine King (born 1963). The family lived in Montgomery, Alabama, before relocating to Atlanta, Georgia, in 1960, where Martin co-pastored Ebenezer Baptist Church alongside his father.

King endured extraordinary personal hardship during the civil rights movement, including the bombing of the family home in Montgomery, constant death threats, and the trauma of her husband's repeated arrests and imprisonments. The assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. in 1968 left her a widow at the age of 40, with four children ranging in age from five to twelve.

Despite these challenges, King maintained a public presence and raised her children while building the King Center and carrying on her advocacy work. She was known for her dignified bearing, quiet determination, and unwavering commitment to the principles of nonviolence.

In August 2005, King suffered a serious stroke that paralyzed her right side and left her unable to speak. She sought medical treatment, including alternative therapies, in the months that followed. On January 30, 2006, Coretta Scott King died at the age of 78 in Rosarito, Baja California, Mexico, where she had been receiving treatment at a holistic health facility. The cause of death was respiratory failure due to complications from ovarian cancer.

Her funeral was held on February 7, 2006, at the New Birth Missionary Baptist Church in Lithonia, Georgia, and was attended by an estimated 10,000 people, including four U.S. presidents: George W. Bush, Bill Clinton, George H. W. Bush, and Jimmy Carter. She was temporarily interred on the grounds of the King Center before being permanently laid to rest next to her husband in a crypt at the center.

Recognition

Coretta Scott King received numerous awards and honors throughout her life and posthumously. She was awarded the Gandhi Peace Prize by the Government of India, recognizing her commitment to nonviolent social change and her work in promoting the principles espoused by both Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King Jr.

King was inducted into the Alabama Women's Hall of Fame, which honors women who have made significant contributions to the state and the nation. She was also inducted into the National Women's Hall of Fame, further recognizing her contributions to American society and the advancement of women's rights.

In 2006, following her death, King became the first African American to lie in state at the Georgia State Capitol, an honor that reflected her significance in the history of the state and the nation.

The American Library Association's Coretta Scott King Book Awards, established in 1969, are given annually to outstanding African-American authors and illustrators of books for children and young adults. The awards, which bear her name, recognize works that demonstrate an appreciation of African-American culture and universal human values. The awards continue to be among the most prestigious in children's literature and have honored numerous authors over the decades. In 2026, Arizona State University professor Jewell Parker Rhodes received a Coretta Scott King Book Award for a historical children's novel, demonstrating the continued relevance and prestige of the honor.

Various institutions, events, and awards have been named in King's honor. The Coretta Scott King Classic, a women's college basketball showcase, was established as an annual event featuring prominent collegiate teams. Essex County, New Jersey, presents a Coretta Scott King Leadership Award, and events honoring her name and legacy continue to be held across the United States.

Legacy

Coretta Scott King's legacy extends across multiple dimensions of American social and political life. As the primary steward of Martin Luther King Jr.'s legacy, she ensured that his philosophy of nonviolent resistance and his vision of racial equality remained central to American public discourse in the decades following his death. Through the King Center, she institutionalized the study and practice of nonviolent conflict resolution and created an enduring resource for scholars, activists, and the general public.

Her successful campaign for the Martin Luther King Jr. Day federal holiday was a landmark achievement that transformed the way the nation commemorates the civil rights movement. The holiday, observed on the third Monday of January each year, has become one of the most significant commemorative dates in the American calendar and serves as an occasion for community service and reflection on the ongoing struggle for equality.

King's willingness to extend her advocacy beyond racial justice to encompass women's rights, LGBTQ equality, and international peace marked her as a figure whose vision of social justice was expansive and evolving. Her public support for LGBTQ rights, in particular, represented a notable stance that placed her at odds with some within the civil rights and religious communities but aligned her with a broader understanding of human rights.

Historians have increasingly recognized King as an independent leader and thinker in her own right, rather than simply as an extension of her husband's legacy. Research by scholars such as Jeanne Theoharis has highlighted King's role in shaping the political direction of the civil rights movement, including her early and influential opposition to the Vietnam War, which preceded her husband's own public stance on the conflict. This reassessment has contributed to a more complete understanding of the collaborative nature of the Kings' partnership and of Coretta's independent contributions to the freedom struggle.

The Coretta Scott King Book Awards continue to honor African-American literary excellence for young readers, and her name is invoked in educational, athletic, and civic contexts across the country. In 2026, the NAACP hosted a free concert honoring Coretta Scott King at Morningside University, illustrating the continuing resonance of her life and work in American communities.

King's life trajectory—from a childhood in segregated rural Alabama to international prominence as a moral and political leader—embodies a significant chapter in the history of the American struggle for civil and human rights. Her insistence that justice, equality, and nonviolence were indivisible principles applicable to all people continues to inform movements for social change.